Hey Kids, Let's Put On A Show!
by Coronfrim Crelumin
Summary: Ever wondered what would happen if the gang got back together? If old relationships had to be confronted? If they were forced to...you know, put on a PANTOMIME! R&R please
1. Introductions

Hey Kids, Let's Put On A Show!

**disclaimer:** i do not own any of the characters potrayed in this story. They are the property of whatever genius wrote Velvet Goldmine! -hails- I do not own any song lyrics used i this or any subsequent chapters either.

**one incident of strong language but i didn't think it worth changing the overall rating.**

**A/N:** Now, I don't think the guy who says "hey kids, let's put on a show!" in the movie (photoshoot) has a name and i've seen that movie about thirty times so i think i'd have noticed. but...if i'm wrong, someone please correct me! For the purposes of this fic, unless said correction is given, he is called Gavin Elles.

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The Cast (in order of appearance)  
Curt Wild _

Mandy Slade

Jerry Divine

Jack Fairy

Cecil Lions (second name made up because I don't think he's ever given one in the film)

Arthur Stuart

Brian Slade

Gavin Elles

Shannon Maddox (see note next to Cecil - substituting he for she, i presume, but then who knows! it is velvet goldmine after all!)

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"Now, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls and whomever else may be in the house this evening... it is my supreme pleasure to introduce, to all you lovely little minskies out there tonight, the Sombrero Club's most shimmering, splendid tale... 

Hey Kids, Let's Put On A Show!"

The theatre was dark and quiet, the ceiling wrapped in thick webs of shadow. Dust hung in the air wafting about in gusts of memories and long-dead echoes. Forgotten voices rang from the deep carvings, bouncing from wall to wall across the warm, humid space.

At the back of the grand hall, a door swung open and a small, unobtrusive figure slipped in. One shadow among others, they swiftly melted into the cavernous hollow beneath the balcony and paused. The wait was not a long one; shortly, the sound of raised voices came from the corridor outside.

"Give me a break! I don't kow anymore about this than you do!"

"Why should I believe that? This whole thing is probably just some pathetic joke that you and Brian have cooked up together!"

"Me and Brian? There is no "Me and Brian" We broke up, remember? You were there!"

After that, there was a sullen silence until the owners of the voices appeared through the door, illuminated by the small glows of the lighters that each held before them. The newcomers, a man and a woman, both with dirty blonde hair, gazed around for a while in search of a light switch. Finding nothing, the woman slumped down in a worn, red velvet seat and lit a cigarette. The end glowed brightly in the gloom and briefly lit up each cloud of smoke as it drifted towards the ornate ceiling. Her companion paced up and down the nearest aisle, appearing unwilling to stand still. Neither of them looked up as purposeful footsteps came towards them down the dark passageway.

A short, stockily built man strode out of the black doorway into the black hall and stopped to survey his surroundings... He caught sight of the other two and seemed only mildly surprised at their presence. "Well, well, well... Quite the little reunion we've got here. Curt. Mandy." He gave them each a nod of greeting before drawing on his own cigarette and starting to wander around, taking in the dim shapes of curtains, floor lights, rows of seats...He viewed it all with a mild disdain that suggested he was wondering what he'd done to end up in a hell-hole like this. The added expression of despair that followed suggested that he knew /exactly/ what he'd done...

The next figure to enter was a tall, thin man with a drawn, powdered face. He drifted gradually into the large room, showing at every step that he could drift back the way he had come without hesitation. To Mandy and Jerry he granted courteous inclinations of his head and, to the former, even a small smile. His gaze stopped as it rested on Curt.

"Curt Wild."

The blonde man sighed and returned the greeting. "Jack." Jack Fairy smiled, with a look on his face that accompanied the retracing of distant memories. He was woken from his reminiscence, however, when there was a squeaking of wheels behind him. He turned and stepped aside, watching with interest as the small figure of a man in a wheelchair emerged from the darkness.

"Well, I never...never expected..." He paused as he spotted the man in the pin-striped suit. "Divine, isn't it? Jerry Divine." The two men eyed each other for a moment before Mandy spoke up.

"Cecil, Darling, it's been years how are you?" The question audibly drooped as she seemed to notice the wheelchair for the first time. "Oh, Cecil Darling, it's not..." He nodded, smiling sadly.

"I'm afraid so, Dear. I tested positive a year or two after we last spoke."

An uncomfortable silence fell on the group until a new set of footsteps broke it.

"Wow. I never thought I'd be walking ten years back in time... Look at this..." The man tucked his notebook back into his pocket and stared around at the untidy circle of faces. Curt, Mandy and Cecil studied the man carefully.

"Arthur Stuart." Curt ventured.

"The reporter from the...Herlad!" Mandy continued.

"My, my, it has been a long time..." Cecil finished.

"Yeah." Arthur replied shortly, containg the crow of amazement and three such legends remembered his name. He looked around them again and this time his expression was puzzled. "Can't help but think there's someone missing though...Where is mister Slade?" He was met by shrugs and blank faces all around. Postures stiffened and faces tensed, however, when from the corridor came the old, familiar sound of platforms thudding on carpet. The group held its breath, eyes fixed on the door. Concealed in the shadows, there was an inaudible intake of breath.

"Well, this _is_ a surprise." It was an understatement. If it was a surprise for Brian, the others were in shock. They had all seen, of course, his latest tour. The blonde wig... the face that had aged two decades in the space of one... the cheesy grin... but this...

It was a miracle. It was all gone. And in it's place stood Maxwell Demon, "space-age-fucking-superstar" in all his electric blue glory. Only Mandy heard Curt's pained gasp. Only Cecil saw the shock in Jerry's face. Arthur caught a glimpse of Jack's eyes shining in triumph. The gathering held a collective atmosphere of..."Oh. My. God." Brian's face was the same. The heavily painted eyes shone with astonishment. Everyone he had spent so long trying to forget...all in one room. Only a very strong instinct to maintain his image at all costs kept his from turnng and running. That...and the five inch platforms...

The shadows moved. The hidden figure moved until it stood right at the edge of the circle. A gentle cough brought seven pairs of eyes to it, like pins to a magnet. "Good. Now that I've got your attention..."

**A/N:** hehe, i know, i'm mean but if you wanna know what happens you'll just have to wait. Exams are nearly over so updates shouldn't take toooooo long...i hope! i _know_ you're all kind kind people who will read and review aren't you? -hopes-


	2. Casting

**The Theatre Of Dreams**

**For disclaimers, cast, ratings etc. see previous chapter. This chapter also has a bit of strong language but, hey, you've presumably seen Velvet Goldmine! I can't imagine you'll be too fazed by it!**

**A/N:** I have recently been informed that "Gavin" Elles' name is, in fact, Mickey. He will therefore be referred to as Mickey Elles from this point on. Thanks for the correction! If it's not too much trouble, could you tell me how you know, because I've never found it.

um...-thinks- ok, I have nothing else to say but read and review peoples! Reviews make me so happy. I re-read themall and they give me a warm, fuzzy feeling! ...what's that? Yes, like a peach. Anyway... -wicked grin- on with the mayhem!

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The man, they saw with eyes now accustomed to the musty darkness, was about five foot seven, with shaggy black hair that dangled over his shoulders. He wore a light blue t-shirt with a black jacket and leather trousers. A smudge of glitter decorated the corners of his eyes. He looked vaguely familiar but who... 

"My name is Mickey Elles, but you'll all be referring to me as Mr. Elles from here on out." They watched him, caught by a mild curiosity. "You may be wondering what you all are doing here. Am I right?" They murmured their agreement and he continued. "Well, I shall tell you. I gave up modeling a few years ago to go to drama school. You see, I always wanted to be a director…movies, television, my name in lights, you know the drill. What does this have to do with you? I hear you ask. Why am I telling you this? Well, as a final project I have been given the task of directing a pantomime, of my choice. I thought to myself, now, who can I get who will do my directive talents justice? Where am I to find the larger than life characters I'm looking for? Then the answer struck me. Why, I had already met them, worked with them." Realization and, in some cases, horror had begun to spread over his audience's faces. "Yes. You are absolutely correct. You," He paused to stare meaningfully at them each in turn. "You are to be the cast of my masterpiece."

The entire group was silent, gazing at each other, struck by the intensity with which the man had spoken, thoughts dancing with…

"Fuck no!"

Seven heads swiveled to stare at Curt whose face was an expression of insulted incredulity.

"As if I don't have better things to do with my time than be in some little kiddy's fucking school show!"

"Aw, come on, Curt. You were never one for stage fright, as I remember! It'll be fun." When Curt's glare did nothing to wipe the victorious smirk off Brian's face, he surrendered. How fucking bad could it be? And he couldn't walk out now.

"What the Hell…it'll help pass the centuries I suppose." Mandy shrugged in response to the quizzical looks she was given.

"Well, I can't be wasting my resources with something like this! I'm an important man; I have many demands on my time!"

"What Jerry's trying to say is he'd love to." Brian translated. Jerry scowled at him but the star took no notice.

"Well, it's not everyday I act in a pantomime with people I haven't seen for quite some years. I should imagine it will be a novel experience. I'll do it." Cecil gave the rest of them a good natured smile.

"I can't say I know how this little enterprise will benefit from my presence but I'd be lying if I said it didn't sound interesting. I guess I'm in." They all looked then at the last member of the circle who had so far remained silent.

"Dear boy, after such enthusiasm, how could I refuse?"

"Well, looks like everyone's in then." The sentence held a strange menace that would have been hard to explain.

When Mickey returned with a pile of scripts in his arms, the uneasy silence had taken root again. Making a mental note to do something about that when he had a chance, he began to distribute the papers between his cast. Curt took one look at the cover and… "Peter-bloody-Pan?" Brian giggled at his reaction, privately rather liking the story – anything where glitter made you fly was alright by him. Mickey ignored them and resumed his place in front of the assembly, which had now fanned out into the front row of seats.

"Well, everybody, this is the moment I'm sure you've all been waiting for…" In fact he doubted any of them had given it a thought. "I'm going to give out roles." Jerry winced, clearly expecting the worst.

I shall not recount the exact events that followed. Suffice it to say that Mickey's pronouncements provoked a colourful mixture of raised eyebrows, incredulous laughs, amused grins and some fairly extravagant language which I do not wish to relate in more detail. The announcements went more or less like this:

Brian – Peter Pan

Curt – Captain Hook

Jerry – Smee

Jack – Tinkerbell (well, honestly, if you go around with a surname like Fairy what do you expect?)

Mandy – Mrs. Darling

Arthur – John Darling

Cecil – Mr. Darling

"I've got a few extras to be Lost Boys and Pirates etc. but you guys are my leads. You'll all be fabulous, I'm sure of it. After all, the secret to becoming a star…"

"…is knowing how to behave like one." A few of them chorused, sounding remarkably like a class of school children.

"Right. I'll see you all bright and early tomorrow morning for our first rehearsal. Ten o'clock sharp everybody. Don't be late." And he swept out through the door, waving unconcernedly over his shoulder as he left.

Curt glared after him, muttering under his breath. He dumped his script on the nearest chair and sat glowering at it as though waiting for it to blink. "Great! Captain Hook! Why the Hell do I have to be the bad guy eh?"

"At least you're not a ditzy, yellow pixie in a mini-skirt." Jack commented with only a hint of bitterness.

"No one made you dress in drag, Fairy-man. That was your own conscious decision." Jack gave Mandy a long stare before standing and leaving with a gracious wave to everyone but her.

Eventually, they were all gone, all but for the sparkling figure that had taken to the stage and was reading through his lines with great enigmatic flare and for the blonde who still sat hunched in his uncomfortable velvet seat glaring at a script he didn't want to open.

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A/N: so any guesses as to what's going to happen here? I love Jack Fairy! Glittery objects to reviewers 

–pleading eyes- Yes, I'm that pathetic.


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